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The teenager’s mum Jane Coombes took her to A&E at Southmead Hospital, Bristol, where she was kept in for monitoring before being discharged.

Jess said: “When I got bitten I wasn’t really thinking anything but when I went to the medical room it suddenly hit me that I had been bitten by a snake.

“I was really panicked, I didn’t know what was going on. It was a throbbing feeling but at the same time there was a lot of pain.

“It swelled up around the bite, which the doctors told me wouldn’t have happened unless the venom went in.”

Adder facts from Forestry Commission

The adder is the only venomous snake native to Britain.

Adders have the most highly developed venom injecting mechanism of all snakes, but they are not aggressive animals.

Adders will only use their venom as a last means of defence, usually if caught or trodden on.

No one has died from adder bite in Britain for over 20 years.

With proper treatment, the worst effects are nausea and drowsiness, followed by severe swelling and bruising in the area of the bite.

Most people who are bitten were handling the snake. Treat adders with respect and leave them alone.

Geography teacher Dr Andy Grant, who happened to be in the student centre when Jess was receiving treatment, said: “As I saw it I knew right away it was an adder bite.

“I’ve been here 23 years and nothing like this has ever happened before.

A file picture of an adder (Image: PA)

“Having said that, it does look like perfect adder territory down there, grassland on the edge of woodland, and given they travel fairly widely at this time of year, it is probably just a defensive bite.

“Jess was very brave through the whole thing and remained pretty calm.

“We are very glad to see she is ok.

Jessica Astley's snake bite

“The paramedics who came said they had never had a single callout for a snake bite, but they were very reassuring and made the whole situation much less stressed than it could have been.”